Tag: All gay & bisexual men

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EMIS 2017 Journal Articles 2017

Cross-sectional analysis of chemsex drug use and gonorrhoea diagnosis among men who have sex with men in the UK

Sexual Health, 2019, 16, 464–472 (doi:10.1071/SH18159).

Authors: Manik Kohli, Ford Hickson, Caroline Free, David Reid, Peter Weatherburn

Abstract

Background: Illicit drug use among men who have sex with men (MSM) has been associated with sexual risk and HIV. Less is documented about associations with other sexually transmissible infections (STIs). The aim of the present study was to determine whether the use of drugs commonly associated with chemsex is associated with increased risk of gonorrhoea among MSM.

Methods: Using data from 16 065 UK-based respondents to the European MSM Internet Survey (2010), we examined associations between a recent diagnosis of gonorrhoea and three chemsex drugs (crystal methamphetamine, γ-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB)/γ-butyrolactone (GBL) and mephedrone). Univariate logistic regression identified determinants of gonorrhoea diagnosis and multivariate logistic regression models calculated adjusted odds ratios (aORs) for independent associations between chemsex drugs and gonorrhoea.

Results: MSM who reported using crystal methamphetamine and GHB/GBL in the previous year had 1.92- and 2.23-fold higher odds of gonorrhoea respectively over the same period (P = 0.0001 and P < 0.0001; n = 15 137) after adjusting for age, recruitment website, HIV status, residence and use of other chemsex drugs. MSM reporting the use of all three chemsex drugs had the highest increased odds (aOR 3.58; P < 0.0001; n = 15 174). Mephedrone alone was not associated with gonorrhoea in multivariate models.

Conclusions: Use of chemsex drugs is associated with a higher risk of gonorrhoea. The results of this study complement existing research about crystal methamphetamine and indicate a role for GHB/GBL in adverse sexual health outcomes. The use of mephedrone alongside other chemsex drugs may account for its lack of association with gonorrhoea in multivariate models. Future research should use encounter-level data, examine other STIs and attribute pathways through which chemsex leads to infection.

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EMIS 2010 Journal Articles 2010

Links between transactional sex and HIV/STI-risk and substance use among a large sample of European men who have sex with men.

BMC Infectious Diseases, 2019; 19(1):686 (doi: 10.1186/s12879-019-4326-3).

Authors: Rigmor C. Berg, Peter Weatherburn, Ulrich Marcus, Axel J. Schmidt

Abstract

Background: In Europe, the highest proportion of HIV diagnoses are in gay men and other men who have sex with men (MSM). Globally, HIV prevalence is particularly high among males who report selling sex, but rates among men who buy sex from other men are less clear. This study analyzed the association of transactional sex (TS) and HIV diagnosis, sexually transmitted infection (STI) diagnoses, and various drug use; and examined the variations in TS by payment direction.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional, non-randomized, observational study. This European MSM Internet Survey recruited MSM from 38 European countries. For descriptive purposes we stratified according to TS behavior (frequently selling sex, frequently buying sex, neither frequently selling nor buying sex in the previous 12 months), and we constructed separate multivariable logistic regression models to investigate whether engaging in TS accounted for some of the HIV- and STI diagnoses and drug use in this population.

Results: Of almost 161,000 sexually active MSM, 12.2% engaged in TS. The multivariable logistic regression results showed that relative to not frequently engaging in TS, frequently selling sex was independently associated with a higher odds of reporting diagnosed HIV (ever, adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 1.60, confidence interval [CI] 95% 1.39 to 1.85), bacterial STIs (past 12 months, aOR 1.75 CI 95% 1.54 to 2.00), using heroin or crack cocaine or injecting drugs (aOR 3.17, CI 95% 2.70 to 3.73), and using benzodiazepines (aOR 2.13, CI 95% 1.88 to 2.41). Compared to men not engaging in frequent TS, frequently buying sex was associated with a higher odds of using benzodiazepines (aOR 2.13, CI 95% 1.88 to 2.41).

Conclusions: MSM who frequently sell sex suffer greater sexual- and substance use risks than other MSM, but both men who frequently sell and those who buy sex are more likely to use benzodiazepines. MSM who sell sex to other men constitute an important at-risk population who must be offered targeted health services.

Keywords: drug use; Europe; HIV; men who have sex with men; sexually transmitted infections; transactional sex

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EMIS 2017 International reports 2017

EMIS-2017: European Report

The EMIS Network. EMIS-2017 – The European Men-Who-Have-Sex-With-Men Internet Survey. Key findings from 50 countries.

Report details:
Stockholm, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, 2019 (ISBN 978-92-9498-341-1).

Suggested citation:
The EMIS Network. EMIS-2017 – The European Men-Who-Have-Sex-With-Men Internet Survey. Key findings from 50 countries. Stockholm: European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control; 2019.

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EMIS 2017 International reports 2017

Maps for “Dublin Declaration Monitoring” 2017

The EMIS Network. EMIS-2017 – The European Men-Who-Have-Sex-With-Men Internet Survey. Maps from the EMIS-2017 Report.

Authors: Peter Weatherburn, Ford Hickson, David S. Reid, Susanne B. Schink, Ulrich Marcus, Axel J. Schmidt

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EMIS 2010 Journal Articles 2010

Structural validation and multiple group assessment of the short internalized homonegativity scale in homosexual and bisexual men in 38 European countries: results from the European MSM internet survey

Journal of Sex Research, 2018; 55(4-5):617-629 (doi:10.1080/00224499.2017.1380158).

Authors: Ha Tran, Michael W. Ross, Pamela M. Diamond, Rigmor C. Berg, Peter Weatherburn & Axel J. Schmidt

Abstract

Internalized homonegativity (IH) is the internalization of negative attitudes and assumptions about homosexual people by homosexual people themselves. To measure IH, Smolenski, Diamond, Ross, and Rosser (2010) and Ross, Rosser, and Smolenski (2010) revised the Reactions to Homosexuality Scale (RHS) to develop the Short Internalized Homonegativity Scale (SIHS) with eight items. Using the European Men Who Have Sex With Men Internet Survey (EMIS) data, with an analytic sample of 130,718 gay and bisexual men in 38 European countries, we confirmed the validity of the SIHS scale in both training and validation data, in strata of Ross, Berg, et al.’s (2013) three “homosexual discrimination” country clusters, of age, and of education level. However, the performance was less adequate in comparison of gay versus bisexually identified individuals. The latent SIHS structure contains only minor variations across these three strata. The seven-item scale performed as well as the eight-item scale. The SIHS is a promising candidate for standard IH measures, which is invariant across cultural, age, and educational strata.

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EMIS 2010 Journal Articles 2010

Anti-LGBT and anti-immigrant structural stigma: an intersectional analysis of sexual minority men’s HIV risk when migrating to or within Europe

Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes, 2017 Dec 1; 76(4):356-366 (doi:10.1097/QAI.0000000000001519).

Authors: John E. Pachankis, Mark L. Hatzenbuehler, Rigmor C. Berg, Percy Fernández-Dávila, Massimo Mirandola, Ulrich Marcus, Peter Weatherburn, Axel J. Schmidt

Abstract

Objective: Gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) might be particularly likely to migrate to experience freedoms unavailable in their home countries. Structural stigma (eg, laws and policies promoting the unequal treatment of oppressed populations) in MSM migrants’ sending and receiving countries represent potential barriers to HIV prevention among this intersectional population. This study represents the first investigation of structural determinants of HIV risk in a large, geographically diverse sample of MSM migrants.

Design: The 2010 European MSM Internet Survey (n = 23,371 migrants) was administered across 38 European countries.

Methods: Structural stigma was assessed using (1) national laws and policies promoting unequal treatment of sexual minorities across 181 countries worldwide and (2) national attitudes against immigrants in the 38 receiving countries. We also assessed linguistic status, time since migrating, and 5 HIV-prevention outcomes.

Results: Structural stigma toward sexual minorities (in sending and receiving countries) and toward immigrants (in receiving countries) was associated with a lack of HIV-prevention knowledge, service coverage, and precautionary behaviors among MSM migrants. Linguistic status and time since migrating moderated some associations between structural stigma and lack of HIV prevention.

Conclusions: Structural stigma toward MSM and immigrants represents a modifiable structural determinant of the global HIV epidemic.

Available online

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EMIS 2017 Journal Articles 2017

From HIV-testing to Gay Health Centres: A Mapping of European “Checkpoints”

HIV and Viral Hepatitis (Conference), Malta 2017 – PS2/04; (doi: 10.13140/RG.2.2.26988.77441)

Authors: Axel J. Schmidt, Dirk Sander, Teymur Noori

Abstract

Background

In Europe, HIV/STIs are concentrated in certain vulnerable groups, above all, men who have sex with men (MSM). For this reason, targeted HIV testing interventions are paramount. In 2002, a community-based HIV testing service using rapid HIV-tests was established in Amsterdam and given the name “Checkpoint”. Since then, the concept of community-based centres (CBCs) for HIV-testing and other sexual health services has spread throughout Europe, and many such centres have been established using the name “Checkpoint” (CP). Over the years, many centres have offered more comprehensive services regarding gay health, including testing for other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), counselling on drugs use, vaccination, and even provision of HIV treatment. The aim of this study to map community-based (and other) sexual health centres targeting gay and other MSM in Europe.

Methods

In preparation of the second round of the European MSM Internet Survey (EMIS-2017), the EMIS-Network, consisting of more than 80 academic, governmental, and non-governmental organisations, was contacted by e-mail (08/2015) to identify “Checkpoints” and other sexual health centres for gay men throughout Europe. 56 centres were identified and 54 responded. Representatives for the centres were asked for the exact address of the centre, the year it opened (as an HIV-testing / gay health centre) and the current opening hours per week.

Results

Community-based centres (CBCs, N=44) were distinguished from traditional clinics/private practices (“clinics”, N=10), although such binary classification is not always clear-cut. The label “community-based”, in this context, involves ownership and/or decision power by a collective of gay men. The proportion of gay men among employees was 67% in CBCs and 41% in clinics. CP Riga and Odense had no gay men employed, while CP Amsterdam, Aarhus, Bern, Copenhagen reported less than 50%. The majority of CBCs (68%) and clinics (80%) had gay physicians employed or closely attached.

Recommendations

The list is still incomplete, especially NHS services (UK) and clinics offering gay-friendly HIV-testing are missing. However we believe we covered all comprehensive sexual health services for MSM in Europe that fall into the upper right quadrant of Figure 2. The added value of maintaining up-to-date listing of CBCs is their use in online mapping services and integration in geolocation-based dating-apps targeting MSM. Experience with the European HIV-Testing-Week has shown that reaching out to MSM through push notifications with a spectrum of HIV services and opening times of Checkpoints is both cost-effective and accepted by the community.

Poster available online

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EMIS 2010 Journal Articles 2010

Проектът ЕМIS – участие на България. Резултати от хив-тестването на респондентите

Health Policy and Management, 2014; 2:21–26. (ISSN1313-4981)

Authors: Emilia Naseva, Tonka Varleva, Petar Tsintsarski, Eva Papazova, Vyara Gancheva, Hristo Taskov

Abstract

The group of men who have sex with men (MSM), is the most affected by HIV, both in Western and Central European countries and in our country. Therefore, the European Commission has funded internet study of MSM community in 33 countries, covering the period from April 2009 to September 2011. The respondents from Bulgaria are 1036. The results of the study in our country showed that more than half of the involved subjects (52.3%) identified themselves as gay or homosexual, one in four (27.7%) considered themselves as bisexual, and 17.1% do not use any term to define their sexual behaviour. Those who claim to know their HIV status are only 68.5% of all respondents; the remaining 31.2% are not sure. It is a concern that a significant proportion (61.4%) of respondents who did not know their HIV status and are sure that they are HIV negative. The information from the survey could be used as a corrective to the already taken initiatives and as a supplement to the new prevention strategies when planning new activities for reducing the spread of HIV/AIDS in Bulgaria at national and regional level. [Article in Bulgarian]

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EMIS 2010 National reports 2010

EMIS-2010 UK local data reports from Gay Men’s Sex Survey

In 2010 the Gay Men’s Sex Survey was part of the pan-European EMIS survey. The following reports present key data from men living in specific areas of England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. They are supplementary to the main EMIS report which was published in March 2012.

GMSS: All Northern Ireland (EMIS) 2010 summary report
(by NHS and Social Services Boards of residence)

GMSS: All Scotland (EMIS) 2010 summary report
(by Health Boards of residence)

GMSS: All Wales (EMIS) 2010 summary report
(by Health Boards of residence)

GMSS: All England (EMIS) 2010 summary report
(by 10 Strategic Health Authorities of residence)

Strategic Health Authority reports for England

GMSS: East of England (EMIS) 2010 summary report

GMSS: East Midlands (EMIS) 2010 summary report

GMSS: London (EMIS) 2010 summary report

GMSS: North East (EMIS) 2010 summary report

GMSS: North West (EMIS) 2010 summary report

GMSS: South Central (EMIS) 2010 summary report

GMSS: South East Coast (EMIS) 2010 summary report

GMSS: South West (EMIS) 2010 summary report

GMSS: West Midlands (EMIS) 2010 summary report

GMSS: Yorkshire & The Humber (EMIS) 2010 summary report